The San Francisco 49ers traded for Christian McCaffrey to see what a supercharged sports car looked like in Kyle Shanahan’s offense. The results have been great.
But the hallmark of Shanahan’s offense, going back to Kyle’s dad Mike and his days with the Denver Broncos, has been taking running backs nobody else wanted and having a ton of success with them. Backs like Jordan Mason.
With McCaffrey a surprise inactive on Monday night with a calf injury and Eli Mitchell on injured reserve, it was Mason’s chance to take on a huge role. And against one of the NFL’s best defenses, the undrafted free agent had the best game of his career in his first NFL start.
Mason had 147 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries as the 49ers rolled to a surprisingly easy 32-19 win over the New York Jets on Monday night.
Mason didn’t carry the 49ers, of course. Deebo Samuel Sr. split backfield duties and had a touchdown. George Kittle made plays. Brock Purdy started slow but got hot as he settled in. Purdy hit fullback Kyle Juszczyk for a 34-yard catch that set up a Mason touchdown early in the third quarter that effectively took the Jets out of the game. The 49ers’ defense is one of the best in the NFL and it showed. But Mason lived out what every backup dreams of, getting his chance and shining when the spotlight was on him.
Curiously, Mason told ESPN’s Lisa Salters in a postgame interview he found out he’d start “maybe Friday, Friday night, something like that.” If true, he certainly had more time to get ready than scrambling fantasy football managers who had McCaffrey in their lineups.
“I never told Jordan he was going to start,” Shanahan told reporters postgame. “I told him he had to be ready a bunch. That might’ve been [running backs coach] Bobby [Turner Jr.] or somebody trying to pump him up. I knew he was going to have to play a lot. I told him it wasn’t going to be like usual. … But he didn’t know for sure he was doing that until today.”
The 49ers’ offense looked as good as ever, scoring on eight straight possessions after a punt to start the game. San Francisco‘s defense wrecked Aaron Rodgers‘ return to the lineup after he missed almost all of last season with a torn Achilles. Rodgers completed 13 of 21 passes for 167 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
The 49ers are still better with McCaffrey, clearly. But the 49ers are the rare team that can put an undrafted free agent in the place of the reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year and look just as good on offense.
49ers roll past the Jets
The night didn’t start that bad for the Jets. Rodgers, playing just his second game with New York and his first that lasted more than four snaps, led an impressive touchdown drive late in the first quarter. Breece Hall scored at the end of it and the Jets led 7-3.
New York’s defense looked good early on. The Jets pressured Purdy and contained the run. After a Hall fumble in Jets territory, New York got a quick three-and-out and the 49ers settled for a field goal. It seemed at that point like the 49ers might struggle to move the ball all night against a deep and impressive defense.
But the 49ers figured it out. They gave Purdy some time and he found the open receiver, like he usually does. Even with Brandon Aiyuk looking rusty after sitting out all of August looking for a new contract, Samuel, Kittle and Juwan Johnson made plays.
Mason scored to give the 49ers a 23-7 lead in the third quarter, and then Rodgers made his first big mistake. He hesitated under pressure, then tried to squeeze in a pass to Garrett Wilson. But 49ers cornerback Deommodore Lenoir had great coverage, tipped the pass and it was picked off by linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles. It was just past halfway through the third quarter but the game seemed over. It’s not like the 49ers’ defense was going to allow that much.
The season wasn’t even three quarters old for the 49ers, but they looked like one of the best teams in football again. Even without McCaffrey, one of the best players in the NFL.
Jets still have work to do
Monday night’s performance had to be disheartening for the Jets. They came into the season with renewed optimism with Rodgers back, and they didn’t look like they were on the 49ers’ level. But it is just the first week of the season. Rodgers in particular should get better once he knocks off some rust. He had played only four regular-season snaps since January of 2023, after all. New York should end up fine this season.
The way the Jets got buried probably said more about the 49ers. The Jets will end up with one of the NFL’s best defenses but the 49ers were able to move them on the line, opening up holes for Mason, and there always seemed to be some receiver open when Purdy needed it. The 49ers’ defense is one of the NFL’s best and that’s a big reason Rodgers’ first game back from injury was so quiet.
We’ll see how the Jets bounce back. We know what to expect from the 49ers by now. They’re a Super Bowl contender again. Just imagine how much better they’ll look when McCaffrey is back in the lineup.
